loader image

Veronality

The marble of Verona

Verona was founded in I Century b.C. and it is defined as UNESCO historic town because of its architecture and urban structure, and as fortified town which has maintained many artistical elements along 2000 years.

 

Since Roman Ages Verona was popular for extraction of marble and stones. Most of its buildings and monuments were made from red and rose Marble and stones. The Red Marble (Marmo Rosso di Verona) is also found in the front face of Basilica di San Marco and Palazzo Ducale in Venice. Nowdays this Marble is still very used for modern buildings because of its elegance and quality. In addition there is another type of Marble which is called Nembro di Verona or Biancone. The colour changes from rose to hazelnut to white; also called Scaglia Rossa Veneta or Pietra di Prun this Marble is used for building purpose and it is very common for roofs, in particular in the Mountain Lessini, where is required by law to protect from heavy snows.

If you are doing our Walking Tour in Verona you will certainly walk into the big and main Square called Piazza Brà where the Roman Arena is located; as an ampitheatre this is the best preserved Roman Monument with old original stones, as you can see from the pictures. If you try to pass near the big arcades you can found yourself a bit lost for the majesty of its dimension, while going inside the theatre you can appreciate the sound effect; in fact during July and August the Opera Lirica is almost set every night. However Arena was originally used for shows and Roman games; therefore the suggestive arcades and galleries can bring you back to the past, while imagining that the basement was used to keep beasts ready to fight against Gladiators.

 

Along River Adige, instead, you can walk or cycle along the medieval Castelvecchio and its Bridge, that was originally used by the Scaligeri Family of Verona to escape out of the town in case of emergency. After our Walking Tour you can visit the Museum inside or take some pictures from the bridge, as you can see a magnificent panoramic view on the river from the little windows used by guards to check.

 

 

 

A very old bridge is Ponte Pietra. In Roman Times there were seven bridges but this is the only one left. In 1945 this bridge was blew out during the war but it has been rebuilded using the stones found in the river underneath. If you decide to take our Bike Tour you will cycle along the river till a very good point to admire this Roman Bridge and understand the structure of the town.

The extraction of Marble and stones used to occur in ancient caves in which some materials were left to sediment in order to make very suggestive arcades, as you can see below. Currently, for safety reasons, the marble caves are only in open spaces. There are 28 Factories today that work on Marble extractions, such as Biancon, Biancosel, Seciaron, as typical Marbles of Lessinia or Pre Alps. The Marble from Verona became very popular in particular in ‘700 and along the ‘900.

Since then, in many famous towns, such as New York, Shangai or Dubai, there is a high request of Marble from Verona to make buildings, hotels or skyscrapers. Since 1965 in October Verona Fair organises the event called MARMOMACC for exposition, conferences and trade.  In the modern time the Marble from Verona is also used for kitchen tables in the typical Osterie, the old wine bars.

 

 

 

by Matteo Pasqualotto

18 April 2017